LONDON, Ont. – Western made quick work of the York Lions on Saturday afternoon, defeating them in straight sets (25-13, 25-19, 25-23) to give Western its ninth consecutive win and stay on top of the OUA West standings.
 
"From the beginning of the season the only thing we've been focusing on is playoffs and getting there. So [having nine straight wins] is a big deal for us," said Western's Aja Gyimah. "We're just trying to finish the best we can to seat us properly for playoffs."
 
Gyimah paved the way for the Mustangs with a team high 13.5 points from 12 kills and two blocks. Fellow sophomore Kelsey Veltman pitched in 12 points from her powerful attack, while veteran Serena Smith added nine points and registered 12 digs to lead the team defensively. 
 
With seven points Celeste Witzell led the Lions throughout the contest, picking up six kills and two assisted blocks, while Cadence Currie came is just behind with six points.
 
The first set opened up with both teams firing and the Lions keeping up with Western at every point. 
 
York was well prepared to handle the Mustangs at the net as they tightly covered their own hitters while posed the biggest blocking challenge Western has faced thus far. 
 
"We expected for them to be scrappy on defence. We didn't expect them to have big blocks at all," said Gyimah about York's first set performance.  "When you find that a team has a big block you just have to become smarter attackers. Go to the corners, roll shots, tips, things like that."
 
Without the purple and white attacks operating at their usual efficiency, serving quickly became the cornerstone of Western's game and their primary source of momentum. Kat Tsiofas led with three aces while Katie McKenna also chipped one in before the Mustangs rounded the ten-point mark.
 
The Lions were also doing their part to move the Mustang score along as communication errors pushed the team even further behind on the scoreboard. Veltman best capitalized on the breakdown, finding the floor on five attacks to lead Western's offence and help close out the set at 25-13.
 
A four-point run from Western opened up the second set, and several more would carry them through to the end.
 
Serving continued to be an important part of the Mustangs' success, while Gyimah took over as the primary threat on the floor. After struggling with a solid Lion block in the first set, the left handed Scarborough native returned to the floor and tore through every attempt to slow her down.
 
The Lions began mounting a comeback with rookie Sabah Kalim hustling in the backcourt to provide a stable first touch for the evenly dispersed offence. While they were briefly able to bring the point difference to four, they couldn't prevent the Mustangs from running back ahead and finishing the set at 25-19.
 
The third set of the game opened as if it was two completely different teams on the court.
 
The previously error heavy Lions cleaned up their communication to cut down on the number of dropped rallies. With a more stable base, the Lion attack was not only stronger, but also faster.
 
York's late set surge was helped along by the Mustangs who, for the first time in the game, were getting tripped up by unforced errors. Previously unseen net violations combined with uncharacteristic problems on the serve to prevent Western from picking up the dominating lead.
 
"We allowed the errors to accumulate," said Western interim head coach Heather Brinkman. "Instead of playing one ball we were playing four previous error points. It's a matter of focus, and something we need to work on."
 
However, not even a slew of errors and a thriving opponent could hold down the Mustangs. With Gyimah and Veltman at the net and Smith in the back court picking up everything she could get her hands on, the Mustangs never fell two points behind the Lions.
 
Pushing harder as they approached the end of the set, the Mustangs stepped ahead of the Lions to take the final frame, and the match, with a 25-23 victory.
 
The Mustangs are back in action at Alumni Hall tomorrow when they face off against the Nipissing Lakers. The first serve is scheduled to be sent out at 1 p.m., and will be streamed live on OUA.tv.
 
While the OUA West first place Mustangs seem to have a leg up on the Eastern division sixth place Lakers headed into the match, Brinkman isn't willing to count them out as a competitor, noting that "in our league anyone can beat anyone and take sets off of anyone."